# Trillions Wasted in Federal Payments

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/us-news-today-2-min-news-the-daily-news-now-7023297/trillions-wasted-in-federal-payments
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/us-news-today-2-min-news-the-daily-news-now-7023297/trillions-wasted-in-federal-payments.md
Podcast: [US News Today | 2 Min News | The Daily News Now!](https://stenobird.com/podcast/us-news-today-2-min-news-the-daily-news-now-7023297)
Published: 2026-05-25T21:36:38+00:00
Episode link: https://api.fastcast.ai/audio/c7644a4a-41c0-42bc-b688-c394a15baa57.mp3
Audio file: https://api.fastcast.ai/audio/c7644a4a-41c0-42bc-b688-c394a15baa57.mp3
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Duration seconds: 112

## Resource

The feds just revealed a jaw-dropping $186 billion in improper payments last fiscal year—with Medicare ($57B) and Medicaid ($37B) leading the list, plus $21B wrongly given to ineligible earners via EITC and $10B lost in SNAP. This isn’t new—since 2003, $3 trillion has been misdirected, likely even more given uncounted risky programs. The spike? COVID-era emergency rollouts (2020–2023). Now VP Vance’s task force is forcing states to tighten oversight or risk funding cuts, as the GAO has long urged Congress and agencies to fix systemic waste and fraud. Support the show: Get a discount at https://solipillow.com/discount/dnn. Advertise on DNN: advertise@thednn.ai This is an automated, high-level news summary based on public reporting. Report issues to feedback@thednn.ai. View sources & latest updates: https://sources.thednn.ai/c1dc35efd3292420

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## Transcript

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